Vehicle-lamp.



PATENTED NOV. 24, 1903.

0. L. BETTS.

VEHICLE LAMP.

APPLICATION PILED AUG.13, 1902.

N0 MODEL.

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No. 744,952. Patented November 24, 1903.

Warren flrarns PATENT @rrrcu.

CHARLES L. .BET'IS, OF BROOKLYN, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR. TO R. E. DIETZ COMPANY, OF NEWV YORK, N. Y.

VEH lCLlE-LAM P.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 744,952, dated November 24, 1903.

Application filed August 13. 1902. fierial No. 119,523. (No modeli:

To all whom it may concern: wardly to provide a socket c, and in this Be it known that I, CHARLES L. BETTs, a socket is secured a supporting-ring D, which citizen of the United States; and a resident of has an outer vertical flange d, an inner ver- New York, in the borough of B rooklyn,county tical flange d, and a bottom d connecting the 55 5 of Kings,and State of New York,haveinventlower edges of said flanges. The ring is ed a new and useful Improvement in Vehiclefirmly secured in the socket against an inter- Lamps, of which the following is a specificanal shoulder thereon by turning inwardly tion. the lower edge of the socket or in any other This invention relates to that class of vehisuitable manner. The upper portion of the 60 I cle lamps or lanterns in which the oil-pot is oil-pot is reduced to provide a neck E, which rem'ovably arranged in the lower portion of is adaptedto be inserted into the supportingthe lamp frame or body, into which the oilring and at the base of the neck with an anpot is inserted from below and in which the nular horizontal shoulder f, which extends oil-pot is supported by projectingparts and outwardly beneath the bottom-ring socket 65 I locked against turning by a spring-catch. and on which the latter rests.

Heretofore these fastening devices have been G represents radial studs, preferably four, of such a nature that the part with which the projecting outwardly from the neck of the spring-catch engages was concealed within oilpot and arranged equidistant around the the lamp or body frame, so that it was imneck. The snpporting-ringD is provided in 70 possible to determine by sight whether the its bottom and inner walls with notches g, oil-pot had been turned sufficiently to interand the inner flange of the ring is reduced lock the spring catch with the part with adjacent to each notch to provide a slightlywhich it engages. It therefore often hapinclined lateral shoulder g and an upright pened that the oil-pot was inadvertently left stopshoulder g at the end of the lateral 75 e5 unlocked,in which case the oil-pot was liable shoulder. In inserting the oil-pot in the to work back by the jarring of the vehicle frame the studs Gpass upwardly through the until the supporting-parts cleared each other, notches g in the ring. The pot is then parwhen the oil-pot dropped out. tially turned, so that the studs ride upon the The object of this invention is to construct inclined shoulders g and draw the pot tightly 8o the spring-catch and the part with which it into the socket. The stop-shoulders limit the engages in such manner that these devices turning movement of the oil-pot. One of the are exposed to View, so that it can be readily notches g in the supporting-ring (that at the determined whether or not the oil-pot has left in Figs. 1 and 2) is enlarged sufficiently been securely locked in position. to permit the passage of the knob on the end 85 In the accompanying drawings, consisting of the wick-raiser shaft, and the flaring porof two sheets, Figure 1 is a sectional elevation tion of the bottom ring is provided with an of the lower portion of a lamp or lantern proopening it for the same purpose. Any other vided with my improvement and showing the suitable construction of the parts which supoil-pot locked by the spring-catch. Fig. 2 is port the oil-pot may, however, be employed. 0 a horizontal section in line 2 2, Fig. 1. Fig. I represents the spring-catch or locking-1e- 3 is a perspective view of the notched supver for holding the oil-pot from turningin the porting-ring on the inner side of the bottom frame. This lever is arranged on the outside ring of the lamp frame or body. Fig. 4 is an of the oil-pot in a substantially upright posielevation of the lower portion of the lamp or tion, so that its lower end or thumb-piece can 95 lantern, showing the oil-pot unlocked. be conveniently pressed inwardly by the Like letters of reference refer to like parts thumb when a person grasps the oil-pot to in the several figures. remove it from the frame. The lever is pro- A represents the bottom or base ring of the vided at its upper end with an inwardly-exframe or body of a vehicle lamp or lantern, tending tooth or projection 71, which stands I00 and B the removable oil-pot. The lower end opposite the lower portion of the bottom ring of the bottom ring is preferably flared outwhen the oilpot has been inserted into the same and is adapted to spring into an opening or recess j in the bottom ring when the lever is brought opposite this opening by turning the oil-pot in the frame. In the construction shown the locking-lever is pivoted for convenience in assembling the parts on-a plate 7 which is soldered to the oil-pot, and its upper end is pressed inwardly by a spring '9, coiled about the pivot-pin andhaving one end bearing against the lever and the other against the pivot-plate. The tooth t' on the lever is preferably curved or inclined, so that the oil-pot can be pushed up into the frame without operating the lever by hand.

Whenthe oil-pot is inserted into the bottom ring, the locking opening or recessj in the latter is exposed to view on one side of the locking-lever, as represented in Fig. 4:. The oil-pot carrying the locking-lever is then turned until the latter engages in the openingj, and the fact that the lever has been securely engaged in the opening is readily ascertained, as the opening is externally arranged and visible as well as the lever or catch. In the fastenings now generally used in lamps of this character the spring-catch is arranged on the bottom ring of thelamp-body, and the depression or recess in which the catch engages is arranged on the upper part of the oil-pot. When the latter is inserted in the bottom ring, the locking depression or recess is concealed by the bottom ring, and the fact that the parts have been interlocked is ascertained mainly by sound,which method is unreliable. The consequence is that the parts are often left unlocked, in which case the oil-pot is liable to drop out. This is particularly objectionable in lamps which are used on road-vehicles, where the dropping out of the oil-pot usually results in its loss.

Another advantage of this construction is that it renders the manipulation of the oilpot very convenient, as the thumb of the hand which grasps the oil-pot is placed on the catch for releasing the latter and the hand is not required to change position with reference to the oil-pot in turning the latter back after.

serted into said body from below and to be turned therein, means on said body and oilpot for supporting the latter on said body, and a spring-catchattached to said oil-pot and engaging the locking-recess of the body when the oil-pot has been turned the required distance, whereby said locking-recess is exposed to view on one side of the spring-catch when the oil-pot is unlocked, substantially as set fort-h.

2. The combination of a lamp-body having its lower portion provided with an external locking-recess, an oil-pot adapted to be inserted into said body from below and to be turned therein, mean-s on said body and oilpot for supporting the latter on said body, and a spring-locking lever pivoted in an upright position on said oil-pot and engaging with its upper end in. the locking-recess of the body when the oil-pot has been turned the required distance and having its lower end adapted to be pressed inwardly for releasing the lever from said recess, substantially as set forth.

Witness my hand this 11th day of August, 1902.

CHARLES L. BETTS.

Witnesses:

FRED. W. VAN DUYN, AUGUST BUDELMANN. 

